Aster Royal Hospital’s doctor shares tips for safer summer life
The common summer problems faced by adults and children in countries with a hot summer are:
Sunburn- Adults and children can have summer health problems. Children love to play outside if they aren’t hooked to their phones. Playing outside for hours means exposing skin to direct sunlight for long duration. The skin becomes red and discoloured because of the harmful sun rays when sunburn happens. Adults too if exposed to sunlight is a risk of sunburn.
Dehydration- When children play outside, they don’t think about the heat. They get so engrossed in their games that they don’t even take a break and drink water, which can lead to dehydration. So, watch out for the signs of dehydration in your child. Even adults should stay well hydrated when working outside during summer. Dehydration can manifest with thirst, less-frequent urination, skin dryness, fatigue, light-headedness, dizziness, dry mouth, and mucous membranes. However, everyone may experience symptoms differently.
If a child or adult gets exposed to high temperatures for a long time, they are at risk for heat exhaustion or heat stroke which may need immediate medical attention. Heat exhaustion comes with many unpleasant symptoms, including increased pulse, dizziness, fatigue,
muscle cramps, nausea and headache. Heat exhaustion can lead to heatstroke, a more severe condition that calls for emergency medical attention. Without care, heatstroke can cause damage to vital organs and muscles. It can even be fatal.
Sun burn can be avoided by keeping your sunscreen lotion handy, applying it to exposed skin at least 30 minutes before going outdoors. Then, reapply every two hours. Choose a product that says “broad spectrum” coverage with a Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of 30 or higher. Limit your time in the sun between 10 a.m.-4 p.m., when its rays are strongest. Wear long-* sleeved shirts. If your skin is sensitive, use an umbrella for shade. Use hats, caps and sunglasses.
Dehydration can be prevented by taking precautionary measures which include drinking plenty of fluids, especially when working or playing in the sun. By making sure you are taking in more fluid than you are losing. By scheduling physical outdoor activities for the cooler parts of the day.
Prevention of heatstroke is more effective than treatment and is certainly easier. In warm weather and especially during heat waves, protective steps should be taken to mitigate the risk of classic heatstroke. These include staying in air-conditioned homes or other air-conditioned premises (e.g., shopping malls or movie theatres), using fans, taking frequent cool showers, decreasing exertion, and increasing social contact to counteract isolation.
In addition, family members, neighbours, and social workers are advised to check on elderly persons frequently to ensure their wellbeing. Adherence to experiencebased preventive measures at both the individual and organizational levels can significantly reduce the incidence of exertional heatstroke. These measures include acclimatising to changed environmental conditions, matching the level of physical exertion to the degree of physical fitness, avoiding hot times of the day for training schedules, removing vapour-barrier equipment and clothing that interfere with sweat evaporation, maintaining a proper hydration regimen, and scheduling rest periods during activity; persons with early signs of illness should be prevented from engaging in physical activity.
Avoid going out if temperatures are soaring above 40c. If unavoidable taking precautionary measures. If outside, try to stay under shaded area. Make the exposure short. Use mussar, kummah or caps for men, hijab for women, wear cotton or linen clothes when going outside. Stay hydrated. Make sure the air conditioning in your car works well and cooling is adequate if your job involves driving around during peak summer.
Longer exposure to heat and dehydration can put one at risk for heat exhaustion or heat stroke. Heatstroke is the most hazardous condition in a spectrum of illnesses progressing from heat exhaustion to heatstroke, in which a shared finding is hyperthermia (i.e., the rise in core body temperature when heat accumulation overrides heat dissipation during exercise or exposure to environmental heat stress). Clinically, heatstroke is characterized by central nervous system (CNS) dysfunction with deterioration in consciousness, multiorgan failure, and extreme hyperthermia, usually with body temperature >40.5°C.
If planning a trip outside during weekends on a peak summer make sure that the exposure is short and limited outside, be under the shade, use sunscreen with a good SPF, stay hydrated, carry enough water to drink on the way.
Wear head gear, cotton or linen clothes. Try not to take infants, small children and elderly or senior citizens along as they are more vulnerable for heat exhaustion. Make sure the car is parked near and the air-conditioning is serviced, and cooling is adequate.
As the Mercury starts rising and drinking gazillion litres of water is not making a difference, the best way to keep your body cool this summer is by keeping your diet right. This will reduce internal heat and make you feel more comfortable with the soaring temperatures. While cold drinks and frozen desserts might seem cooling, they are not. Instead, they affect you adversely.
‘Cool as a cucumber’- heard that one, right? Cucumbers instantly hydrate the body and bring down the body heat. Snack on them as a salad or with your favourite dip.
Watermelons and musk melons sell like hot cakes in summers. Juicy and full of nutrients that the body needs, the melons make for great summer companions. Not only do they hydrate but boost the body with power-packed nutrients like Vitamin B, magnesium, potassium and fibre. The green leafy vegetables are high in nutrient value, calcium and provide a good cooling effect on the body. They can be had in smoothies, salads or as a side dish in a meal.
Packed with calcium, curd, yogurt or laban should be your go-to option for a healthy summer alternative to cold fizzy drinks. Rich with Vitamin B and gut-friendly bacteria, curd soothes the body from within. Add flavour to it by mixing it with mangoes, strawberries and other fruits.
To boost the protein content in your diet without depending on meats, turn to fish. Rich in good fatty acids, fish, makes for a tasty alternative. Since it generates less heat on consumption, you won’t feel lethargic and uncomfortably full, a feeling that usually we associate with after having chicken and meat dishes.
The rise in mercury leaves us irritated and it often results in lack of appetite. While we feel that it is happening because of heat, to an extent our lifestyle and food habits are responsible for the change. Fried food is not easy to digest, which further leaves you bloated and should be restricted. We all know that meat is not an easy to digest food. Excessive consumption of meat in the summer season increases the pressure of the digestive system.